<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Heebie Jeebies by kodomomo</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28061889">Heebie Jeebies</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/kodomomo/pseuds/kodomomo'>kodomomo</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Jojo and Xerox! [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Hiveswap, Homestuck</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Butlers, Crushes, F/M, Flirting, Fondling, Groping, Kissing, Mid 20s, OK WOW, Partial Nudity, Trans Xefros, i think joey and xefros are in their 20s?, my man xefros reached second base im so proud of him, pa doesnt make an appearance but i kind of hate him, we're explicit now</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 16:21:44</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Explicit</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>12,372</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28061889</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/kodomomo/pseuds/kodomomo</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>You've never seen her type of species. </p><p>She keeps telling you you have a cute smile and a gorgeous laugh and you really have no idea how deep end these red feelings are. Should you indulge them?!! Thankfully, your informant tells you there's no need to make the first move.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Joey Claire/Xefros Tritoh</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Jojo and Xerox! [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2059290</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>46</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Pre-Declaration</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“She’s in love with you, you know.” </p><p>“Who?” you asked. </p><p>Tyzias scoffed. She was amused by your ignorance for now, but she was certain it would get annoying very quickly. She took out a cigarette pack from her back pocket and proceeded to light it with the lighter on the table. Humans were considerate enough to provide ashtrays everywhere unlike Alternian public places. She was certain troll society would have just let her use low blooded scum as a receptacle for her tobacco ashes. She thought it was really quite pointless to perpetuate the hemospectrum in such a tactless and unhygienic manner. You were just grateful she didn’t have conservative political Alternian views. </p><p>She inhaled deeply, savoring the nicotine going into her bloodstream. You were polite enough not to be bothered by the second-hand smoke. It was hard to complain in the presence of a high blood. You supposed old habits were hard to break.  </p><p>You two were admiring the balcony from her room. The Harley-Claire's had been generous enough to provide her with a guest room. And you've known Tyzias through-out the years, mostly from your connections with the rebellion. You knew her well enough to know who she was referring to. But you tried to feign ignorance. Maybe you were wrong. Maybe it was Marsti or something. You always suspected she had a pale crush on you.</p><p>“I mean, don’t flatter yourself,” she said listlessly. “It’s more like some spur in the moment infatuation, I guess. Although she’s been suppressing it.” </p><p>“Oh, um-” </p><p>“It’s Joey Claire, you dense grub,” she snapped. She inhaled another large breath of smoke and then slowly let the carcinogenic fumes escape her lips. This was how she coped with flailing idiots all the time, it seemed. “It’s pretty obvious how she plays favoritism with you.” </p><p>“I haven’t told- She doesn’t know,” you whimpered. Joey couldn’t possibly look at you the same way if she knew your big secret, unrelated to your petty red infatuation with her. </p><p>“She’ll appreciate your honesty,” she refuted. “I thought you’d be ecstatic to know your feelings are being reciprocated. I don’t really expect her to react so violently to the ‘revelation’ as any other human.” </p><p>“It’s not really a revelation.” </p><p>“She’s planning on telling you,” she interrupted. “Confess that she likes you, I mean.” </p><p>“When?” </p><p>“Party,” she informed. Her eyes drifted towards the Earth’s sky. The stars were different here, rearranged yet familiar. She couldn't pin any of the 144 constellations of the Alternian zodiac. But it assured her to know that the vastness of space made her feel so insignificant and meaningless no matter what planet she was in. She missed her home, of course. But it’d be a lie to say she wasn’t relieved to have escaped the ails of violent troll society. She assumed you probably shared the sentiment. But you did terribly miss your friends back home.  </p><p>“I told her about the thing you told me <em>in confidence</em>,” she rasped. </p><p>“No, that’s the one thing I wanted to tell her myself!”  </p><p>“Not that. About your early graduation. Your circumstance. Your ‘fate worse than death’. She seemed offended to know working as a butler to her had been intended as a gruel punishment from your butler seminary.” </p><p>“Why couldn’t you have let me tell her myself?” you murmured. </p><p>“You had a sweep, Tritoh. You wasted your chance. I mean, she asked for legal consultation, so who was I deny a client? But there are only details you know that I couldn’t possibly have told her.” </p><p>“Hey, Tyzias,” you started, mumbling. “S-she’s technically my boss right?” </p><p>“Everyone who isn’t a gutterblood is your boss, Tritoh. Even before you were swept up in this entire butler ordeal.” </p><p>“At least, I’m not like <em>ordinary </em>Imperial Attendants...” The most prominent and infamous one was the Empresses’s golden helmsman. He had lived a very gruesome life of servitude.</p><p>“You are at the mercy of her generosity. If she wasn’t so <em>human<span class="u">,</span> </em>she’d abuse you relentlessly. I suggest you get a lawyer or something to get out of that seedy contract of yours. I reviewed it and you really have nothing to gain by working here. It’s a lose-lose situation.” </p><p>“Joey tried. She really did try. But her lusus, her human ‘Pa’, thought that would bring offense to the Empress if she nullified the arrangement.” </p><p>“Oh,” she said, surprised. You guessed Tyzias didn’t know Joey tried to rewrite the legal ramifications of your contract since you got hired years ago. “How long is it valid for?” </p><p>“Eternity. Unless- the empress dies or something,” you murmured. “And Joey tried to nullify the contract. Y-you should have seen the things she tried to do. She even shut out her family, asked professional help from legislacerators outside of Earth. But it was difficult. Those sorts of contracts are equivalent to the legal binding of a servant to the Alternian Empress.” </p><p>“Right,” she said. She was basically talking to a slave. The notion must have bothered her because you saw her eyebrow twitch as she took another huff of smoke. “You deserve someone like her, really. Her pity for you extends beyond platonic implications. Like seriously? Just get a goddamn room already.” </p><p>“T-tyzias!” you squeaked.  </p><p>“Heh. She’s not that bad to look at too, huh? Even if back in Alternia she would have gotten diagnosed with a number of physical and mental deformities.” </p><p>“No, she wouldn’t,” you protested. “S’pretty and nice.” </p><p>“Hmm,” Tyzias hummed. “Want a cig?” </p><p>“Pass,” you said. You hadn’t had a cigarette since you were 8 sweeps old. </p><p>“Your loss, Tritoh.” </p><p>You looked to the sky. Your planet was so far away that it might as well have been an infinite speck in the horizon. Tyzias tried to comfort you by patting your back. It was awkward and definitely not warranted, but you appreciated the gesture anyway. You just hoped you the smell of smoke wouldn’t stick to your clothes. You knew how much it bothered the other rustbloods back at the mansion. </p><p>“I think you’re just worried about the power dynamic, huh?” </p><p>“Huh?” </p><p>“I mean- if I dated any of my subordinates of course I’d feel uncomfortable. I guess that’s what Joey feels.” </p><p>“You think?” </p><p>“Well- yeah. But you don’t technically work for her anyway. You were assigned to serve the heir right? Joey’s an heiress <em>down</em> the line. Not the immediate successor. You work for What’s-his-name. John or something.” </p><p>“June,” you corrected.  </p><p>“Why the hell do all human names start with a J?” </p><p>--- </p><p>You were exempt from your duties to organize party. Everyone else was busy with decorations, and cooking and guestlists, but Joey has specifically banned you from working. You didn’t take any day-offs this month, and she insisted you used them. You weren’t one to deny her orders, although this one seemed more like some sort of favouritism, which earned a glare from the other rustblood servants in the household. You hadn’t realized how much work they were bombarded with; it was for the sake for the visiting highbloods after all. Maybe Tyzias was right. Maybe Joey did play favoritism. But this clear indication of nepotism didn’t bother you in the slightest. Instead, you were trying to find something nice to wear. Joey had invited you as her plus-one, and that implicated interacting or even god-forbid conversing with the Alternian high-class. She had promised that Earth etiquette barred any proud highblood from treating you like rust filth but it still worried you that they’d feel some sort of contempt at the idea of an Earth heiress preferring a servant’s company.  </p><p>Your only other ‘friend’ was a neophyte who had constant insomnia and an affinity for mug-collecting. You crossed her out your list of options for people to ask about fashion-advice. It seemed like you were on your own- unless you were brave enough to ask Joey Claire for help that is. It wouldn’t be <em>that</em> big of a deal, right?  </p><p>You looked at your closet, which was filled with your work attire and your only <em>two</em> casual outfits. You never really had an affinity for fashion, no ordinary troll did. You were embarrassed how tasteless and basic your interest in fashion was. Humans were far more expressive in their clothing choice, and that included Joey. You looked in the mirror, and you saw the most unremarkable troll you’ve ever met. Well, you were <em>remarkably</em> stupid so that counted for something right? </p><p>Your hand trembled as it reached for the phone on your table. Maybe Joey wouldn’t <em>mind </em>helping you pick a suit that <em>wasn’t</em> a silly butler uniform. You were friends, after all.</p><p>You nearly jumped at the sight of a text notification from your phone.  </p><p> </p><p><span class="jane">hi xef! wanna go clothes shopping for the party today? all my dresses don’t seem to fit me anymore so im going to rent one! Wbu?</span> </p><p> </p><p>The heavens seemed to have answered your prayers. More than once, actually. And here you thought God was some sort of skull-headed time demon hellbent on the torture of your species. You texted her back, immediately. She loved your texts. She called your typing quirk “amusingly clever” once.  </p><p> </p><p><span class="aradia">I guess I'll go. give me X minutes to get ready first X:)</span> </p><p>--- </p><p>“Ass-kisser!” </p><p>“Rusty Dog!” </p><p>“Human-Lover!” they shouted, and you really weren’t offended by the lack of ingenuity in their insults. Their malice seemed to be playful more than anything else. They were teasing you for your platonic ‘date’ with your human girl. It was really quite obvious the way you blushed and stammered whenever you were near her. If Joey didn’t know about your crush then she really might be denser than you originally thought. And now that you knew she <em>reciprocated</em> your feelings, you had a hard time believing you could keep your composure for very long.  </p><p>Your rust colleagues didn’t seem to appreciate the idea that you were off on an extravagant shopping spree while they were slaving away with the preparations of a party. Although, their Alternian counterparts would be seething in <em>jealousy</em> at the idea of being servants here. Lowbloods had far more liberties on Earth than you could have dreamt back home.  </p><p>“No faiiiiir. You get to have a pretty date while we’re slaving away!” </p><p>“Well, I mean- Xefros usually does the worst jobs since he’s an Imperial Attendent.” </p><p>“True, though. I heard Mr. Harley told him to appease the wild lusii he captured from Africa! He almost died from the dung smell!” </p><p>“No wonder she pities him,” one of them shook her head. </p><p>You really didn’t know what to say. They laughed at how red your face looked. You looked like a ripe Earth strawberry which you thought would have been an exaggeration if one of them hadn’t shoved a mirror up your face to let you look for yourself. You slumped into your shoulders. You really hoped you’d have more self-control over your feelings when you were with Joey.  </p><p>You’ve been saving up enough money to buy yourself something nice to wear, and you really didn’t want Joey to exert her own cash reserves to get something for you. Throughout the time you knew each other, she had already given you plenty of incredible gifts, knowing you couldn’t possibly pay her back. You clutched at the necklace she gave you. It was hard to remember the last time you took it off. </p><p>They laughed at you some more as you quickly headed towards the garage. You grumbled a bit. Maybe they wouldn’t have relentless <em>teased</em> you if they knew how Joey actually did like him! Well, at least that’s what Tyzias told you. And you trusted her enough.  </p><p>You felt up your hair, trying to slick it in the way you liked and tidied up your shirt. You remembered wearing this on Joey’s wriggling day. You really tried to look nice. You had asked Marsti to cover your shift, since you were certain she was competent enough to take care most of your cleaning duties. You promised her to take her out for some grub to make up for it but she declined. She assumed this way a way to be repaying the favour you did for her when you helped her set up a computer last week, not that you were a tech wizard or anything. </p><p>You wondered if Joey would be driving you to the mall, today. You really had no idea how to drive a car. Tyzias tried to teach you but you ended up nearly crashing into a human child once. It was safe to assume Joey would be the taking the wheel. Even though, you probably knew a lot more aboutcars than she did. You were often told to clean the vehicles there. You thanked the heavens when you found out how to use a VPN (Violent Plague Network) to access GrubTube. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have figured out how to change tires and change the fluid reservoirs for human cars.  </p><p>When you arrived at the garage, you saw Joey admiring Mr.Harley’s Harley-Davidson motorcycle. She was gushing at how cool it would be to drive to the mall.  </p><p>“I can <em>totally</em> drive this,” she smiled. “And you can just hop on the back and hold my waist.” </p><p>“Thanks, but- I like taking the bus better.” </p><p>“Come on, Xefros. I can totally text Pa and ask him to borrow his bike.” </p><p>“Um, but we don’t have anywhere to put our shopping bags then,” </p><p>“Fine,” she smiled. “I guess a 2003 Toyota will have to suffice.” </p><p>--- </p><p>You were pretty self-conscious when you went public places on Earth. You certainly stood out. That’s why you preferred staying at the Harley-Claire mansion surrounded by the other servant trolls. You couldn’t even speak English here. The basic phrases you learned during your entire sweep here was “This is a pen” and “Where is the toilet”. Other than that, you were completely inarticulate.  </p><p>But Joey wanted you to have a good time here and stuck by your side. It was your first time being here (the mall had recently opened two months ago and you hadn’t bothered checking it out), so she showed you around before going to the clothing rental store. If she wanted, her father could have bought out this entire <em>mall</em>. So, you didn’t understand why she wouldn’t just buy a dress instead of renting one. She explained that exploiting her father’s wealth made her feel guilty, since she didn’t want to be associated with such a terrible dad in the first place, so instead she told you she was going to use the money she earned on her own as a ballet teacher. You really didn’t know heiresses had the humility to get a <em>job</em>. Then again, you only ever knew Trizza to be the one and only future-monarch to the Alternian throne.  </p><p>Joey was an heiress to her father’s company, not an entire species! But well, you could see how well her privileges extended. She was so humble and kind despite being from a deeply wealthy family. She was planning on leaving it all behind one day. But that would cruel to her younger brother, so she shouldered most of the responsibilities. At least, until she can figure out how to legally distance herself and her brother from the Harley inheritance. </p><p>“Hey, so- you're renting a tux for the party, right?” she asked.  </p><p>“Yeah. I think I don’t want to embarrass you by showing up in my butler uniform.” </p><p>“Even if you do- You'd look cute in it,” she smiled. </p><p>“Thanks,” you said, rubbing the back of your head. You never received compliments well, even when you were a wiggler. The distance between your hands and hers started to grow smaller as you approached the store. You really tried to pretend not to notice, but you were under the suspicion Joey knew how nervous you were. You were anxious to see Joey Claire in a lovely dress. She’d look nice in anything, if you were being honest.  </p><p>“Ah, I wonder what kind of dress I should wear? Blue? Green?” </p><p>“You’d look so pretty in red,” you murmured.  </p><p>“Red?” she grinned smugly. “That’s a bold choice.” </p><p>“It was just a suggestion, really,” you said, feeling the heat on your cheeks. Maybe you shouldn’t have been so obvious you wanted her to wear <em>your</em> colour, but it was too late for regrets.  </p><p>“I’ll consider it! If-” </p><p>“If?” </p><p>“You wear something blue. It’s my favourite colour, you know?” </p><p>You nodded bashfully as she dragged you inside the store. She seemed very excited to ask the clerk for the myriad of red dresses they had. She really liked trying them in, and it was fun to pretending it was like some sort of movie montage. You liked how they hugged her curves or how some of them fell loosely on her shoulders gracefully. You supposed even trying on clothes would be fun as long as Joey was there with you.</p><p>“How about this one?” she asked, twirling in a backless red dress that reached her ankles. Her face was blushing a very crimson colour, and you had to stop yourself form gushing on how cute she looked.</p><p>“Hmm, I don’t know,” you teased. “I think you might want to dress up in something you can actually dance in. Don’t you want to show off how you can do the splits?” </p><p>“No dancing! Pa really only invites me to these just to show off how much he paid for my ballroom dancing classes. I'm not going to dance just to give him the satisfaction!” </p><p>“Then I like this one if you like it too,” you remarked. <em>You look pretty in it,</em> you wanted to say. But you kept that to yourself. She'd probably just tease you about it. You couldn’t wait until the party when Joey decided to confess her feelings, at least that’s what Tyzias she assumed she was going to do. But you couldn’t trust her sources, since apparently this had come from Joey’s drunkened mentor.</p><p> You wouldn’t have the courage to do such a thing as <em>confess </em>to Joey Claire.. She was technically your boss's <em>half-sister. </em>And that was a pretty complicated relationship to maneuver around. It was hard trying to distinguish the lines between professional and casual relationships already with her. Let alone an entire quadrant! Not that it wouldn’t be nice…….</p><p>If Tyzias had said nothing in the balcony you wouldn’t be so caught up in these thoughts.</p><p>“Okay fine. I guess I'll settle on this one! Now, let’s find <em>you</em> something to wear, ok?” </p><p>She dragged you to the changing room, asking for the clerk to bring you 5, no <em>10 </em>(it was your favourite number after all)<em>, </em>of their best blue attire. You were dumped ceremoniously with a bunch of clothes as you were pushed into an enclosed space. This was pretty overwhelming. You were glad that most of the tags showed that these clothes were <em>within </em>your budget range. </p><p>You shuffled and struggled with putting on most of them. They were a little <em>big</em> on you. And the really formal ones were a bit too tight on your neck. Maybe you should just go for something semi-casual. I mean- it was a <em>party</em> after all. It felt a little wrong, but if there was anything you learned during your sweep her, it was that Earth played by their own rules.</p><p>You stepped out the changing room in one of the suits that didn’t feel quite so stuffy to wear in. You darted your eyes to your shoes. You didn’t want to see that bubbly smile that told you how ridiculous you looked in it, but the silence that came after it frightened you. So eventually you looked up and saw her mouth agape. </p><p>“xEFROS! Oh my god, you look so-”  </p><p>“Pretentious?” </p><p>“X-cellent!” she cried. She made sure to be able to <em>emphasize</em> the X. She must have known how wide it would made you grin.  </p><p>“You think so?!” you smiled, elated to hear such nice compliments from your friend. Her enthusiasm was intoxicating. You’d admit you liked hearing nice things from a beautiful girl.</p><p>“Ah, I never thought blue would look so good on you. You look so dapper.” Her eyes took you all in, flushing with pink.  </p><p>“I guess it’s nice to be able to wear something that’s not red all the time.” </p><p>“Promise you won’t ditch me when we’re at the party. Oh, I bet every troll there is gonna fall in love with you,” she laughed. </p><p>“You think?” you raised an eyebrow, smirking. “I mean, it’s not like I’m going to forget about my plus-one.” </p><p>She blushed profusely. Inviting someone as a plus one wasn’t a big deal. If she wanted to, she could have invited her own dad as her plus one. It had totally platonic implications! But well, you wanted to tease her a little. Tyzias’s disclosure on her crush gave you a little bit of an ego boost.   </p><p>“And here I thought you’d be running off getting wooing boys and girls,” she smiled, giddily.  </p><p>Oh my god, she was flirting with you, wasn’t she? Was this suit always so stuffy? You tugged at your collar a little bit, averting your gaze. “I’m not much of a casanova. I guess most of the time they just pity for me being such a ditz.” </p><p>“You’re <em>adorable </em>when you’re clumsy,” she remarked. “It’s your little quirk. Personally? I like it.” </p><p>“I don’t think you’ll find it cute when I trip over my shoelaces when I’m dancing,” </p><p>You two remembered the day when you had to take ballroom dancing classes for some sort of escapade her dad was doing. He was trying to prove a point about how it was important for his servants to have the grace and poise of a human dancer. Needless to say, you were the least <em>graceful</em> among your peers. One of the trolls <em>with a crutch</em> had managed to dance better than you. You two burst out laughing when Joey pulled out her phone to show a photo of you that day. Your legs and arms were sprawled out on the floor in defeat, and least to say you had already given up at any endeavor of being a prima ballerina.</p><p>Your intimate moment was interrupted a when human lady approached Joey. You couldn’t understand what they were saying, but she seemed very cross with you two. She kept gesturing and pointing at you, which was a little rude, but you didn’t say anything about it. You couldn’t help but think you did something wrong. It escalated to the point where the lady kept shouting at you. She was speaking English slowly, hoping you’d understand, but you tried to gesture the fact that you didn’t know what she saying.</p><p>Joey looked so <em>pissed</em>.  </p><p>She told you to go back to the changing room and change into your normal clothes. You did just that, and you didn’t realize that while you were changing Joey had managed to get the lady kicked out of the store. The manager was profusely <em>bowing</em> to her, mumbling apologies you didn’t really understand. She looked very <em>angry</em>, and you couldn’t help but think that when her eyes were furrowed like that she looked a little bit amusing. Her arms were crossed while she was impatiently tapping her foot, no doubt annoyed by the manager’s excuses.  </p><p>When she saw you come out of the changing room, she grabbed your hand and dragged you out the store. You asked what happened, but she brushed it off saying she was hungry. </p><p>“I’ll tell you over lunch,” she assured you.  </p><p>--- </p><p>“They were so <em>rude</em>,” she huffed, biting into the rice ball rather harshly. You went to the mall food court and bought some Thai food. But whatever delicious food couldn’t distract Joey from what had happened earlier. You sipped on your coconut drink as she kept munching angrily. You had to admit that human food was way more delectable than Alternian grub.  </p><p>“Did we do something wrong?” you asked. “I guess we were laughing pretty loudly. I understand if-” </p><p>“No, Xefros! That’s not it! That lady was complaining about how we were speaking Alternian!” she explained, swallowing her food. “I tried to explain that you couldn’t speak anything else but they were so <em>insistent</em> that you speak English! How entitled is that?” </p><p>“I mean, I do need to brush up on my English-” </p><p>“That’s not fair. You’re actually Eastern Alternian, right? Common’s not your first language. You already know two languages and they’re asking <em>you </em>to be considerate.” </p><p>“Joey, it’s really fine- I mean,” </p><p>“No, it’s not fine! Their intolerance is so <em>petty</em>. I never want to see anyone looking down on my friend like that just because he can’t speak English!” </p><p>“Joey,” you said, looking into her eyes. You gripped her hand, assuring her it was alright. She was so feisty and that would have made you laugh if you didn’t already understand that she was truly worried for you. You wanted to make sure it was really okay. Plus, you were under the impression that things might escalate into very legal matters if she pushed this any further a bigger deal than it was. You really didn’t want to involve any lawyers. </p><p>“I’m fine, but- I'm sure if I had been alone, I wouldn’t have the slightest idea what to do. So, thanks for standing up for me,” you said, gripping her hand to hold.  </p><p>You used to have a very bad habit of saying sorry all the time. But ever since Joey came into your life, you learned to say thank you a lot instead. It felt nice not to feel <em>undeserving</em> whenever somebody did something nice for you. You mostly felt gratitude now. She stood up for you a lot when you were too shy to do it yourself. That’s what you liked about her so much. She was so different from anyone else you had ever met. You didn’t really care if some old lady thought you were some sort of idiot or a rude alien creature or whatever. You just liked the idea Joey would always be there for you. </p><p>Her smile was so pretty and sincere, you swore your bloodpusher might pop out. She seemed content at your answer, and stopped complaining about the xenophobic encounter you two experienced. You two managed to get to another rental clothing store to pick out your clothes. Although this time, you got something red. You didn’t really want to imply you were some sort of highblood or anything by wearing blue! Even much to Joey’s assurance, you told her it was ok. You liked red better anyway.</p><p>Needless to say, it seemed you two would wear matching colours. And concerning the lack of <em>rust</em> guests, you two would probably the only ones wearing such outrageously classless colour in a room filled with highbloods.</p><p>--</p><p>The day of the party came, and you’ve been thinking about the conversation you had with Tyzias more often than you’d like to think. When you woke up you realized you had dreamt of some very <em>inappropriate</em> scenarios. When you climbed out your reuperacoon and sauntered to a mirror, you examined how red your cheeks were.</p><p>She was planning on <em>confessing today. </em></p><p>Needless to say, you tried to brush that thought off. You shouldn’t be so optimistic. You learned not to be to have reckless high expectations only to be disappointed later. Maybe some cooking would distract you, but you found out the enormous amount of LEFTOVERS in the communal fridge that had been sitting there for a couple days meant you wouldn’t be cooking any time soon.</p><p>If you weren’t going to cook maybe you could check up on Marsti. She was shouldering most of your cleaning responsibilities after all. You found her scraping an already spotless floor in the ballroom. She was a perfectionist in her field of work.</p><p>“It looks brand new,” you started. “As if the mess hadn't happened at all.”</p><p>There was an incident where Mr. Harley had brought numerous “exotic” animals and let them loose in the mansion. The monkeys had made a very prominent mess here much to your dismay. You were supposed to clean it, but most of the work had been done by your friend here.</p><p>She grunted, scarping the floor harder.</p><p>“The ballroom already looks good, Marsti. I’m sure Mr. Harley will appreciate it.”</p><p>Guests would start to arrive in five hours, and even if you were exempt from your cleaning duties you wanted to check up on Marsti for doing you a favour. Apparently, the jobs you were supposed to be doing had to be thrusted on someone else. You were assured that she was getting fair compensation however. What a strange concept of ”fairness”, but Marsti liked the idea of getting paid more just to do something she liked to do anyway. Cleaning was her calling in life.</p><p>“He better. I spent six hours wiping off every shit smelling corner.”</p><p>“Eh, um- You won’t mind cleaning up afterwards if the guests- make a bit of a mess, right? You know how highblood Alternians are….”</p><p>“I do. I worked an entire dark season cleaning up blood off walls in some cerulean’s basement. Lusus blood, though.”</p><p>You gulped. You supposed you could count on Marsti to clean up blood-related messes, then.</p><p>“Don’t sweat it, Xefros. And the bonuses are a nice perk. I’m going to spend it buying Eastern Earth food for my wriggling day.”</p><p>“I think they call it Asian food, actually.”</p><p>“Even better,” she said. “Hey, why aren’t you dressed up or something?”</p><p>“Well, I mean- it’s in six hours. I don’t want to get my suit smelly with my gross sweat.”</p><p>“Hey, meet me in my room once you wanna get ready. I can help you tailor the outfit a bit. Maybe even get you smelling <em>not</em> like absolute troll piss.”</p><p>“Didn’t know you were so-“</p><p>“It’s called <em>grooming</em>. I like making people presentable just as much I like making load gapers presentable. I don’t trust you enough to <em>not</em> embarrass yourself for your human date.”</p><p>“I-I’m just her plus-one!”</p><p>“Right, and all the red flirting she does in front of everyone is all a game. Seriously? Her pity could only be more obvious if she yelled on top of the building telling you she loves you.”</p><p>“You think so?” you asked shyly. Maybe you were being dense towards Joey’s feelings. That would be pretty insensitive.</p><p>“I mean- do you like her back?” she asked.</p><p>You gazed down at your shoes and fiddled with your thumbs. You felt a drop of sweat trickle down your forehead and down your neck. That was a heavy question, wasn’t it? “I heard a rumour she was going to um, ask me out today.”</p><p>“No.”</p><p>“Yes.”</p><p>“<em>No.</em>”</p><p>“Y-yes!”</p><p>“<em>Will you say yes?!”</em></p><p><em>“</em>Yes!” you squeaked, closing your eyes. You felt like some kind of silly school girl but then again, wouldn’t anyone if they were this in love?</p><p>Marsti took off her goggles.</p><p>“Didn’t know you were such a Casanova dating your boss’s daughter like that.”</p><p>--</p><p>
  <span class="aradia">X: joey</span>
</p><p>
  <span class="jane">whats up xef?</span>
</p><p>
  <span class="aradia">im just checking. we’re going together right?</span>
</p><p>
  <span class="jane">of course silly!</span>
</p><p>
  <span class="jane">ah but I forgot that tt’s coming to the party so I have to talk him for a bit first</span>
</p><p>
  <span class="jane">is it ok if we meet up halfway?</span>
</p><p>
  <span class="aradia">ya that’s fine!</span>
</p><p>
  <span class="jane">omg youre so cute xef</span>
</p><p>
  <span class="jane">at the party lets meet up at the maze? we can have a bunch of awesome thai food after my business stuff</span>
</p><p>
  <span class="aradia">um so do I just loiter around?</span>
</p><p>
  <span class="jane">AH! tyzias is going to be there. i told her to keep you company for a bit.</span>
</p><p>
  <span class="aradia">ok. cant wait to see you X:)</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>hey guys! i'm planning this to be a 2 chapter fic. I'll update it next week once I manage to edit the script for chapter 2. it gets sort of explicit so that's why I rated it as such in advance. Im so starved for xefjoey content but decided to make some of my own fics for once XD. comments and kudos are always appreciated lol</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Fine as Hell</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>ANOTHER WARNING IF YOU HAVENT SEEN THE UPDATED TAGS<br/>this is where it gets explicit so be mind of that! i updated the tags already. i know I said i'd update next week but I couldn't help myself :p </p><p>btw thanks for the nice comments I got! i don't want to reply them individually but I appreciate them:)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The party was needlessly extravagant. And remarkably dangerous for scumblood like you. Blueblooded trolls glared and scoffed at the sight of your rust clothes, but Tyzias was behind you to growl and snare her teeth whenever someone tried to even touch you. She was an Imperial Legislacerator so even purple blooded subjuggulators didn’t dare mock her. The emblem on her suit jacket marked a superior rank, one that blood status couldn’t even outrank.</p><p>“Honestly, friggin’ Alternians. I’m glad I left our planet a long time ago,” she snarled.</p><p>“I know what you mean,” you murmured.</p><p>You and Tyzias mostly hung out near the buffet, trying to avoid all the smug troll aristocrats enjoying themselves. Most of them were relentlessly bullying your colleagues, telling them to go on pointless tasks. You cringed at the sight of one of the cerulean bloods yelling at Damien for spilling hotdog all over her. She mindcontrolled him to slap himself, causing him to choke on a hotdog he didn’t finish chewing. You couldn’t help but stifle a laugh. Even in peripheral context of her abusing the power dynamic, it was pretty funny.</p><p> Most of the highbloods were a lot more….<em>composed</em>. In your past experience, parties like this would have a lot more blood and violence.</p><p>“This party isn’t so bad. I mean- no one’s dead.”</p><p>“That’s because murder is illegal here,” she reminded you.</p><p>“Right, right,” you said, forgetting.</p><p>Tyzias was nibbling on the delicious human food, colourful to a bountiful degree. Humans preferred agricultural means to sustain themselves, and the buffet table was bombarded with yellow rice, coconut shavings, hot spices and a lot of other exotic food you liked. Joey taught you to make Karedok once, and it was fulfilling to know how to make <em>her</em> favourite dish.</p><p>Alternian food was just as colourful. But instead of vegetables and plant-based staples, you used a lot of insects and a <em>lot of meat</em>. You liked grubsauce as much as the next troll, but you were proud to be involved in a unique human culture! Tyzias seemed to share the sentiment. She was devouring plates as if it was her last meal.</p><p>You fiddled with your palmhusk, accessing Chittr. It was hard trying to use human-made alternative apps even though they were just as good as Alternia’s. They were just a bit inaccessible to you. Alternian Common wasn’t a language option in the settings, for one.</p><p>You went through you account to see all the pictures you saved up all through out the sweep. Most of them were with you and your colleagues. They liked taking pictures <em>a lot</em>. It seemed like you had hundreds of pictures of them. But you had pictures of you and Joey, too. She was shy in front of a camera, and honestly you were too. A lot of the pictures between you were really stiff selfies on very special occasions, like the time you celebrated your wriggling day to go to the beach with her. You two didn’t take pictures very often, and you regret that in hindsight.</p><p>A lot of the pictures you had of her with pretty bad. You both were so awkward. But that’s why this one photo you took once was extra special.</p><p>You snapped this one on her camera when she was laughing at a joke you just told her. She looked so <em>blissful</em>. like she could stay this way forever and she would never get tired of it. Her soft smile was nearly covered by a light red blush across his face. The cherry blossom trees around her seemed to contrast the dark color of her red face, so the picture came out even better thanks to them.</p><p>You couldn’t help but grin.</p><p>“Xefros, you’re smiling like a complete goofball,” Tyzias snapped. “Quit staring at your goddamn palmhusk. C’mere. I want to introduce you to someone.” </p><p>“A-ah! Sorry.” You shoved your palmhusk down the pockets of your pants, looking up.</p><p>Tyzias had a teal blooded girl wrapped around her arm. You nearly squeaked at the sight of threschecutioner markings on the girl’s arm. You’ve had unsavory experiences with the profession, unfortunately.</p><p>Your friend introduced the threshecutioner as her matesprite, and you were honored to have finally meet her. You told her how much Tyzias talked about her. Tyzias had spoken highly of her and that made Tyzias blush frighteningly cute blue hues on her cheeks. The threshecutioner was perky and enthusiastic to meet you, gushing at the sight of at the first “Imperial Attendant” assigned to serve a human heir. She praised you for your lack of bruises and wounds. That was a traditional Alternian indication of Godly favour. And you couldn’t help but think that, too.</p><p>“He’s an excellent strifer. He didn’t die when he was confronted with the most gruesome of subjuggulators,” Tyzias boasted. She was exaggerating, of course. At the time, you were trying to console the drunk birthday clown at Jude’s wriggling day party when he accidentally smashed a glass bottle on your head. You opened your mouth to correct her. But well, Tyzias winked to let you know she was pulling your leg. </p><p>“Oh, it must be<em> absolutely terrible</em> serving the humans. Are they as violent as the purple caste?” Stelsa asked. </p><p> “Some of them aren’t that bad,” you started. “But they’re sort of- um, what’s the right word?” </p><p>“Blindly optimistic,” Tyzias interjected. </p><p>“Ya, that’s it,” you said, nodding. Human were filled with so much will to <em>live. It</em> was admirable, really.You could imagine lots of trolls hissing at how stupidly foolhardy they were. Even the most desolate among them had fierce inclinations on what was wrong and right. </p><p>“Oh, how dreadful! Sounds excitingly amusing, though,” she rasped. “Reallyit’ssoexcitinghowdespitetheirpeacefulhistorythattheymanagetobecompetentinstrategicaldiplomacyinwarthoughhitmight-” she continued on like that, and you couldn’t follow on how fast she was saying words. You might have thought she was speaking a different dialect if you weren’t completely sure she was speaking Common. Tyzias leaned in towards you and said, “Stelsa’s a handful, but I love her,” she chuckled. </p><p>Stelsa was talking about her job, not regretting the fact that she had abandoned her initial dream of being an auditerrorizer. Since her profession was open to all castes, most of her colleagues had come from a variety of social status. She had begun to reflect on the role the hemospectrum played on troll mentality. She hoped she could see how different society was when everyone was so colourblind to the colour of their blood.</p><p>“Um, yeah- All humans have the same blood colour,” you said.  </p><p>“And it’s exceptionally <em>red</em>. Mutant red, I dare say,” she said. “I read about all about their psychic powers. They have this called power called <em>tenacity</em>. Makes them almost unkillable.” </p><p>“Sweets, that’s <em>not what tenacity means-”</em> Tyzias tried to explain but she was cut off when Stelsa went into a full blown rant about human powers like <em>empathy</em> and<em> sarcasm</em>. You listened along because you realized she just had a very weird sense of humour. You couldn’t help but chuckle as Tyzias moaned in annoyance. She didn’t really find this culturally ignorant shtick very amusing, you supposed.</p><p>“Next time, I’ll ask <em>Tegiri</em> to be my plus-one.”</p><p>“Darling, no!” Stelsa objected. “I am definitely 100% better company than him!”</p><p>“<em>Try me</em>,” she huffed, crossing her arms. “Look, at Xefros. He’s exceptional company. He only ever nods and smiles and says something when we ask him to. I’m jealous whoever invited <em>him</em> first.”</p><p>“You’re joking,” Stelsa laughed. And Tyzias’s entire shtick cracked as she smiled. “Being such a ass-kisser wouldn’t be fun! Ah, no offense Xefros.”</p><p>“Heh. Well, I guess he’s not like this when he’s around his plus-one.”</p><p>Stelsa turned to you, realizing that <em>of course someone had invited you to come</em>. Not even Imperial Attendants would exceed their blood priviledges. Every troll who had come here had blue blood. And your gutterblood was rustier than rust.</p><p>“Ah, who invited you, darling?” she asked, sweetly.</p><p>“Eh? Ah? It’s Joey Claire,” you managed to stutter.  </p><p>“Joey <em>Claire?</em> A heiress?!” </p><p>“I mean, one of them.” </p><p>“Yes, yes. I’ve heard of these brooding units on Earth. Families! Like cloisters, right? Is she first in line?” she asked, curiously.</p><p>“You mean to inherit the company? No, I think she’s third in line.” </p><p>“Ah, but still-! What an honor<em>,</em>”</p><p>Tyzias shook her head, smirking. Stelsa had always been dense with quadrants. But that gave her an airy charm that she loved. “No, Stelz. This one stole her bloodpusher.”</p><p>“<em>No,” </em>she gasped. “A quadrant?! Let me guess. It’s red isn’t it?”</p><p>“N-not yet! We haven’t even done anything!” you protested.</p><p>“I can see red infatuation, when I see it,” she grinned slyly. Her lips curved so wide you thought they’d reach the tips of her ears. “Ah, don’t mind us then. We must be distracting you from your valuable time with your lady-friend~ Isn’t it wonderful to see young love, Zizi?”</p><p>“Sure,” she shrugged.</p><p>You talked to Tyzias and Stelsa through-out the night. You were grateful to not be <em>alone</em> here when you could feel several eyes glare at you. The tealbloods took over the conversation, talking about Earth and Alternian economic policies and the increasing influence of the rebellion in the Dreck Terrains. That used to be your home prefecture, and even before you left Alternia it was a homebase for the tertrachs. </p><p>However, the conversation got too complicated for you when they started talking about engineering arsenal and the chemical composition of the mass production of Ahabs Crosshairs. You were increasingly surprised by their articulacy in chemistry and engineering. You felt a little bit stupid talking to these people. You didn’t know how to follow what they were saying, it was hard to interject with anything meaningful to say.</p><p>“Xef, you ok? You’re awfully quiet,” Tyzias asked, concerned.</p><p>“Yeah, I just- I can’t wrap my thinkpan around the science stuff.”</p><p>“I guess when you’re talking about industrialization you’re bound to talk the intricacy of weapon models," Tyzias shrugged.</p><p>Stelsa patted you on the back. “Don’t worry! Most of the stuff we’re saying was about that article in the New Maggot. We could never call ourselves experts in this field of-“</p><p>“Uhh-“</p><p>“Ah, right. Right, sorry,” Stelsa giggled. “Why don’t you tell me about you and Joey, then?”</p><p>“Eh?! I-I’d rather not. Sorry. That’s a bit too personal.”</p><p>“Oh my goodness! I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to intrude!”</p><p>“Jeez, Stelsa. Meddling much?” Tyzias quipped.</p><p>She playfully punched Tyzias’ shoulder and they both laughed. You could tell what they had was special. They looked so happy. So in <em>sync</em>. The chemistry between them was sincere and genuine, it was a beautiful relationship. Yeah, it wouldn’t be so farfetched to imagine <em>you and jo-</em></p><p>You and…</p><p>Maybe you should check your palmhusk to see if Joey’s finished.</p><p>
  <span class="jane">xefrossss im waitin by the maze</span>
</p><p>
  <span class="jane">where are you?</span>
</p><p>
  <span class="aradia">sorry! otw</span>
</p><p>“Ah, is that Joey?” Tyzias asked, looking over your palmhusk. “She finished?”</p><p>You nodded.</p><p>“Then don’t keep her waiting you dummy.”</p><p>“Er, I- Are you guys coming?”</p><p>Stelsa shook her head. “I want to go the poolside! Maybe have a mini-photoshoot.”</p><p>“Yeah, and they’re serving orange popsicles, too,” Tyzias added.</p><p>“Plus, don’t you want a little <em>privacy</em>?” Stelsa teased, waggling her eyebrows.</p><p>“E-eh?!”</p><p>They left you but not before Stelsa grabbed you by the arm, whispered, “good luck” and winked. God, why were they indulging in your crush?! But deep down, you did quite like it. Having people support you for your petty infatuation with a pretty girl wasn’t <em>that</em> bad. In fact, it sort of made your heart flutter. Now, that you thought about it. You were probably supposed to meet Joey at the gardens by now.</p><p>You navigated through a <em>sea </em>of arrogant and perilous highbloods. You made sure not to make eye contact or to even think about bumping into them. Maybe your friendship with a heiress would exempt you from the prospect of being culled, but the audacity of having shitblood like yours would piss off any conservative Alternian. You really just wanted to be with Joey again. She made you feel comfortable in your own skin. You used to feel guilty having a friend so amicable and compassionate. You just decided to never take it for granted.</p><p>You did love her. Maybe you should do something about these palpating red feelings once and for all. But indulging in those feelings made your face blush really bad. Oh god, you were getting sort of dizzy. You hoped Tyzias wasn’t pulling your leg the other day.  </p><p>You went out the ballroom, entering the gardens. You liked being alone here since the other trolls didn’t like how off putting and overgrown the vegetation was. Jake Harley had a very tacky taste in architecture <em>and </em>gardening. He had commissioned a young man from France to design a maze for him, filled with vines and flowers and shrubs and the such. It looked wild, untamed and incredibly unprofessional, but he liked it, insisting it represented the maze he encountered daily in the forests of the Amazon. You’ve never met the man, but from what Joey tells you, he’s a bit of a joke.</p><p>The maze was <em>huge</em>, but you found Joey relatively easily. She was inside the outer spaces of the maze, sitting in a bench peacefully. She was texting someone on her phone, holding a glass of <em>something</em> on her other hand.</p><p>You cleared your throat.</p><p>“Xef!”</p><p>“Hi,” you grinned.</p><p>When you got closer, you noticed what exactly Joey was drinking. Least to say, you got a bit worried.</p><p>“Did you drink the red punch?”</p><p>She hiccupped, smiling. You could see her tipsy blush on her cheeks. “Yeahhh, it feels hot on my throat.”</p><p>“It’s spiked….” You told her. Earlier, mischevious pranksters had dumped bottles of vodka in the punch, which was insensitive since the humans here didn’t drink alcohol. It was a part of their religion, you think.</p><p>“S’not a cactus….Not <em>spiky</em>,” She slurred. “Tastes sorta like vodka.”</p><p>“It <em>is</em> vodka. I mean, there’s vodka in it.”</p><p>“Heeh,” she giggled. She seemed lost in thought. “I know. Now, I get why people like getting hammered.”</p><p>“Joey,” you said softly, and her attention jerked towards you. Joey’s widened, as she tried to compose herself. Her dress was wrinkled and her face too flushed to show.</p><p> “D-don’t look at me like that, Xefros. I’m a mess, right now.”</p><p>“Um, how many drinks have you had already?”</p><p>“Half a dozen.. I got a bit depressed after talking to Taylor for a while.”</p><p>“Depressed?”</p><p>“He was just being a jerk,” she dismissed. “He got to me, so I thought I could let loose with some alcohol. I forgot I was a lightweight, I guess.”</p><p>“You still seem pretty- yourself.”</p><p>“Haha, really..? Then- don’t regret saying that when I start puking.”</p><p>“….Maybe you should stop, now.”</p><p>She smiled, and you don’t know if the flush from her flush was from the alcohol or from embarrassment. She gripped on the glass harder, afraid it might somehow slip from her hands somehow.</p><p>“Do you want my drink, then? It’d be a waste to-“</p><p>“No. I think it’s best if one of us it actually, y’know sober.”</p><p>“Then I’m finishing it. I’m trying to build some alcohol tolerance, anyway,” she hiccuped.</p><p>She slid to the right side of the bench, ushering you to move next to her. You sat, accidentally brushing your thigh against hers. She didn’t mind the lack of distance, so you didn’t bother moving. Parties were never your forte, but it seemed Joey also got overwhelmed by how many people there were here. She wasn’t the main highlight of the festivities anyway. Her sister June was probably being wedged between two seadwellers, talking about fish politics or something equivalently ridiculous.</p><p>“I used to hate this maze. It was just something Pa got for himself just to show off how much money he had. It wasn’t even his money. It was all grandma’s,” she remarked. “Actually, now that I think about it- Isn’t this where we first met?”</p><p>“I got lost,” you smiled. “Everyone was trying to find Tesseract and I was told to go look in the maze.”</p><p>“Yeah, I remember. I also remember you jumping when you saw me! You were so scared.”</p><p>“I heard rumours of humans being exceptionally cruel to trolls….” You refuted. “And having the seeming ability to be unkillable. Alternia lost the war remember?”</p><p>“Let’s not talk about politics. Blegh,” she said, disgusted.</p><p>“It was the first time I saw a human. And when you started speaking to me….”</p><p>“Prft. My Alternian was perfect right?”</p><p>“I don’t know,” you teased. “You put way too much emphasis on your Rs.”</p><p>“Hey!”</p><p>She playfully punched you in the arm and you laughed.</p><p>You two talked a lot. Mostly about work, sometimes about your friends. If you two weren’t dressed up in uncomfortable clothes, you would have never guessed there was a party anywhere near here. This is what it was always like with Joey. Even if you were in a room alone together and did nothing, the silence wouldn’t be uncomfortable.</p><p>She gulped down the half of the glass, as if it was just water or something.</p><p>“Take it easy, Jo,”</p><p>“It’s a <em>party</em>, loosen up will you?” she laughed. “You act like a mom, sometimes.”</p><p>She finished the rest of her drink, and carefully placed it on the ground so it wouldn’t break or shatter if she dropped it. Her phone rang, she took it out and denied the call. But the person on the otherwise was persistent and kept calling back. Multiple times, in fact. Eventually, she just turned it off, grumbling in response.</p><p>“Who was that?” you asked.</p><p>“Pa,” she said, rolling her eyes. “He wants me to come to the balcony and meet some people.”</p><p>“Ah, ok. You’re not going to-?“</p><p>“I wanna be with you, right now,” she declared. “…matter…..if….”</p><p>“Huh?”</p><p>She smoothed out her dress and fixed her hair. Her hands were fidgeting and playing with the fabric of her clothes. They were shaking, but you guessed if she hadn’t drunk 7 glasses of alcohol she would been quaking in her boots. She looked at you with those brown eyes, gleaming under the Earth moon. It was extraordinary. The Alternian twin moons weren’t here to witness your beautiful view, unfortunately.</p><p>“Do I look ok?”</p><p>“You look nice,” you assured her. Not nice, exactly. X-quisite.</p><p>Her eyes sparkled.</p><p>“I like you,” she blurted, drunk.</p><p>“W-what?”</p><p>“Xefros, I like you a lot.”</p><p>She looked away, closing her eyes. She was preparing for the worst it seemed.</p><p>“But it’s so weird and inappropriate because <em>my half-sister’s your boss </em>and you’re a butler. You work so hard every day. You make my family mansion actually nice to look at and live in. Your cooking is so good and you’re so good with the pets that I just really don’t know if anyone this <em>nice</em> does exist. It’s your job to be nice and caring but I don’t know if this is-” </p><p>And then she started speaking in her human language. You don’t understand because you haven’t made any remarkable attempts at learning Earth vernacular. She’s incoherent and sloppy, and you think she’s starting to sob tears. You can see the red puff of her eyes and cheeks. She was incredibly flustered from her own confession, which just seemed to have been prompted by the alcohol in her blood.  </p><p>“J-joey! I can’t understand what you’re saying.”  </p><p>“R-right,” she said, stopping. She took another sip of that vodka, and you think you really should stop her from drinking anymore, <em>now</em>. You took the glass away, putting it far from her reach. You gave a very solemn and disappointed look as she sheepishly rubbed the back of her head. </p><p>“Sometimes, I just think you’re just nice to me because it’s your job,” she admits. </p><p>“Joey Claire,” you mutter. “I enjoy being with you as much as you like being with me. You were my first friend when I came here.” </p><p>“I planned this out differently,” she admits. “I wanted it to be romantic.”</p><p>“This- your dad is fine with it? I mean- with you er, liking me?” </p><p>“I don’t care what he thinks,” she sneered. “I just wanted to be honest about my feelings with you. Like an adult, y’know? You don’t <em>have </em>to like me back, but-” </p><p>“I do like you,” you spilled. She was a remarkable specimen of the human species. Why wouldn’t you like her? “For a long time, too.” </p><p>“You did?” she perked.  </p><p>“I <em>do</em>,” you assured her. You were getting really embarrassed. Trolls didn’t express their love so verbally. Maybe <em>you</em> were getting a little tipsy too. You were doing things you normally wouldn’t really do. “I like you a lot. I <em>know</em> you just said a bunch of reasons why you like me but-” </p><p>“You can’t believe it?” </p><p>“I can’t believe it…”</p><p>“Well,” she prodded shyly. “What do you like about me...?” </p><p>“You?” </p><p>“Yes, me!” </p><p>“I love everything about you,” you admitted. “You’re so smart and intelligent. I love the way you brush hair out of your ear when you giggle. I love it when you can’t stand for injustice and speak up when no one will. You’re so bright even when the rest of the world is so cruel.” You weren’t surprised by your own words. It was your honest-to-god opinion, but when you heard them outloud they sounded a little bit sappy, you couldn’t deny that. You looked away, not really caring what kind of dumb response Joey might say when she was so drunk. Would she even remember this? But then you felt a hand on your thigh, and you looked up. Your eyes met hers, and the intensity of her gaze made you blush. Joey was so beautiful, even if her face was flushed from alcohol. It fact, you thought it made her look cuter.</p><p>“Xefros,” Joey murmured. Her face was getting increasingly red by the second. “I think I’m really drunk.” </p><p>--- </p><p>She kept vomiting into the toilet bowl, groaning in desperation for some sort of catharsis to this nightmarish hell. She never took alcohol well, so she promised out loud how she’d never <em>ever</em> touch it again. Not even brandy! Even though she liked the sweet hot aftertaste it left in her throat. The last time she was this drunk, she had long hair that reached her hips that you would pull back while she puked. But her short hairstyle she sported didn’t warrant any of that. You missed having an excuse to touch her fluffy hair. </p><p>After your mutual declarations of “love”, Joey puked all over the ground. Apparently, she did not have the stomach to process alcohol very well. You had to get her out of the party and into one of the guestrooms, since apparently she had misplaced the key to her bedroom somewhere. She practically scrambled to the toilet, puking more vomit.</p><p>You patted her on her back as she spilled her guts out. It wasn’t as revolting as you’d thought it’d be. This really was nothing compared to your past experiences with your maintenance on your lusus’s excrements.  </p><p>“Y-you still there, Xef?”  </p><p>“I’m here.” </p><p>“I think my stomach’s finally giving up. I-I wanna go to bed now.” </p><p>“Brush your teeth first-” you complained. And she moaned but complied. </p><p>You guided her to the bathroom, making sure she wouldn’t trip or slip. She brushed her teeth softly, eyes half-open and tired.  She gargled mouthwash and spit it out, and decided to floss her teeth in the morning when she didn’t feel so bad. Now, her mouth didn’t smell like puke anymore. But you could still smell the alcohol on her clothes. She really shouldn’t have been spilling vodka all over her pretty dress. She leaned into you as you helped her walk to her bed. She was pretty ditzy, and kept tumbling with her own two left feet. But you managed to lay her down gently on the bed. You wondered if you should help her change out of her party attire but then quickly brushed the thought away. You supposed it was ok if she fell sleep wearing that. Humans were very sensitive being naked in front of other people, and you couldn’t really understand why. Back in Alternia, trolls had more liberal views concerning nudity. </p><p>She’d probably would feel embarrassed if you asked for her to change in front of you. </p><p>So you just tucked her into bed, brushing your hands against her cool forehead. You were relieved she didn’t have a fever. You were surprised when Joey tugged at your sleeve, her sleepy eyes met yours as she told you <em>to come into bed with her.</em> </p><p>No, way! She wasn’t in her right mind. </p><p>“Just to cuddle, Xef,” she muttered, tugging your sleeve again. “I wasn’t- I didn’t ask you to do <em>that</em>!” </p><p>“O-oh! I mean, I-” </p><p>“S’cold. And you’re warm like a person, y’know? Bluebloods are coldblooded- but I bet you’d feel just like a kotatsu...” </p><p>You didn’t know what a kotatsu was but you nodded. The bed was pretty small, but it managed to fit the both of you. And I suppose it gave an excuse for Joey to wrap your hands around you. You went into the sheets, closing the distance between you further. This was- god this was so red you didn’t even know where to begin. Your pity was so glaringly obvious it was basically textbook. Did she <em>have</em> to be so vulnerable when she was drunk? Then again, the pity in the relationship was usually directed at you since you were a pretty pathetic unremarkable lowblood butler. So it was nice to feel needed.  </p><p>“Warm,” she muttered. “My face feels really hot.” </p><p>“Go to sleep, silly.” </p><p>She kissed your nose. You watched her as fell asleep, breathing heavily and slowly. You wondered what it would feel like to wake up to that face tomorrow morning.  </p><p>--- </p><p>When you woke up, you felt really refreshed. You were surprised you didn’t have any sort of nightmares. It’s been a while since you slept in a bed. You preferred sleeping in the respiteblocks here (Joey’s brother made sure all the trolls got fresh batches of sopor each week so you rarely get nightmares if at all)  but you really didn’t mind sleeping in a bed next to someone so wonderful. When you looked to your right, you saw Joey sleeping soundly. She looked so peaceful. You brushed some of her bangs out her face, cupping her cheeks. </p><p>“Good morning,” you whispered.  </p><p>She didn’t reply. When you were certain she was still asleep you tried to get out of bed without waking her up but you felt a hand tugging at your shirt, urging you to come back.  </p><p>“Mmfm, Xef- don't go,” she moaned. “’Think m’bit hungover....” </p><p>“Poor thing,” you chuckled, going back to bed. You went under the covers, cuddling Joey Claire in your arms.  “You sober?” You were making sure she had <em>some </em>of her senses about. </p><p>“Yeah. And don’t worry, actually the hangover’s barely noticeable now...” </p><p>“Good,” you said, smiling. </p><p>“Xefros, I’m so sorry you had to be there when I basically vomited my guts out. I haven’t gotten this drunk since-” </p><p>“Since Miss Lalonde got that promotion and invited you to a drinking party. I know, I was there, too.” </p><p>“Thanks, Xef. I- I think you’re spoiling me to be honest,” she chuckled. “Don’t you deserve to be spoiled, too?” </p><p>“Maybe,” you grinned.  </p><p>She closed her eyes and leaned in. The distance between your lips became smaller and smaller as you leaned in too, meeting her half-way. The kiss was so agonizingly slow and shallow. She pecked your lips as her hand trailed from your cheek to your side. You gushed at how eager she was. At least, she was sober this time. You didn’t really like the idea of sharing your first kiss with her when she was drunk. You both regretted it, but this one felt real and purposeful.</p><p>“Can I touch?” she asks. Her hands are on your shoulders, but she wanted to roam your body and feel up your chest it seemed. You’re not thinking straight so you’re distracted be how heavy your bloodpusher felt. You nodded, and she continued the kiss as she explored your upper body, hands over your clothes, your neck, your hair. She was so gentle with you, but the heat in your face became prominent when you were invaded with the idea that your daydreams were soon becoming reality. The friction felt nice. <em>Really nice. </em>She was so warm against you and you couldn’t help but let out a small whimper.</p><p>
  
  <em>Fuckkkkkkk!</em>
</p><p>Your hand hovered over to one of her breasts, not quite touching them, and you asked yourself if this was really ok? You never had experience with this sort of thing before. You were so busy attending to Mr. Harley's <em>miscellaneous </em>requests that you never had time to fill in a quadrant. You didn’t want to admit that this kiss was the first kiss you had in a <em>very</em> long time. And this was as far as you had gone, but Joey seemed a bit too eager. She slid her tongue out, trying to stimulate your lips. The kiss deepened into a really slow French Kiss, one that was treaded lightly since the both of you seemed a bit inexperienced with this sort of thing.  </p><p>She guided your hand to one of her breasts, and <em>god, they were so soft. So small. So cute.</em> She moaned, her breath getting heavy as your hands groped her perky breasts, maneuvering against the lacy red dress she had bought the day before. You tried concentrating on the kiss, but also paying mind to groping her boobs through her clothes, too.  </p><p>You squeaked as Joey flipped you over, and she was on top of you now. She peppered you with shallow kisses on your neck and you couldn’t help but giggle. You were <em>really</em> ticklish there. </p><p>“S-stahp!!!! Joey, it <em>tickles</em>,” you burst in between laughs. </p><p>“You're sensitive there, huh?” she teased. </p><p>“Y-yaaa!,” you wheezed. After that intense chuckling session. It took you a while to realize how close her hips were to yours. She was practically straddling you, <em>scratch </em>that- she <em>was </em>straddlingyou. She slowly removed her dress but not all the way, as she exposed her chest to you. She reached her right hand at the back of her bra, unclasping it. Once she removed it, she threw it to the side, moving her attention back to you. </p><p>You were lying on her bed, sweat dripping from the palms of your grey hands. She was half-naked, burying her face in your neck as she told you how much she liked you. The way she said your name was soft but passionate, like a prayer to a god. “Look at what you’re doing to me,” she breathed in your ear and you didn’t lie if that didn’t bring a shiver down your spine. Oh god, you think you’re in love with her voice. You’re choking back murmurs of her name and she seems to smile against the kisses on your neck. You had a hot alien babe on your lap and you had no idea what to do. She noticed your predicament, it seemed. So, she was patient.</p><p>“T-there on my thigh, Xefros,” she urged you. And you complied, because you were still a subservient servant. Your hands stroked her the skin of her thigh as she began feeling your hair, ruffling it slightly. You guided her lips to yours, and broke into a kiss again. You thought it was selfish of you to be still be dressed head to toe in your party attire when Joey had slithered off part of her dress to expose her boobs to you. Your eyes darted everywhere else but her cleavage. They were petite and small, which suited her personality somehow. She kissed your neck, and her hands hovered over the cloth where your grubscars would be. When you realized how her skin meshed against yours too perfectly you realized you had gone too far. You hadn’t even told her yet. But the kiss was too distracting. Her pink lips were so soft, and you wondered if she could taste your fruity cherry Chapstick you used? The idea of morning sex with a friend you admitted to have repressed feelings for was sort of appealing.  </p><p>You were groping each other in bed, feeling each other out. And nothing felt desperate or needy. It felt sweet and nice to be held by her like this. Your sloppy make-out session felt like it hadn’t lasted very long but it probably had lasted 15 or even 20 minutes.</p><p>“Your boobs are…”</p><p>“Yeah?”</p><p>“I-I like them.”</p><p>“You’re not so bad yourself, you sonuva gun,” she purred. “You’re soft around the edges…”</p><p>“S-soft?! You mean chubby, don’t you?”</p><p>“I like that. It means you’re nice to cuddle with,” she replied, giggling.</p><p>You rolled your eyes. But a blush crept up on your cheeks as you began fondling her breasts again. Playing with them was so much fun. And it stroked your ego to know that you when you touched her you made her whimper and grunt now and then.</p><p>“O-oh my god,” she whispered.</p><p> You kissed her neck as you felt her body on top of you, saddling your lap. Her sensitive area brushed against yours and you pretended not to notice. You liked touching her a lot. You could do this all day if you wanted. And Joey seemed to share the sentiment with her heavy breaths and mutual fondling.</p><p>Her hands wandered onto your chest, fondling with the buttons of your shirt. You grunted anxiously. The only thing acting as a barrier between Joey’s hands and your bare skin was the cloth of your fabric. She seemed so touch-starved for you. Well, you wouldn’t really blame her. You <em>had </em>been teasing her with physical intimacy throughout the night. You held hands with her, hugged her. Hell, just now you were goddamn French Kissing her. It was very evident she wanted something deeper and more prominent. The kiss ended when you tried to object. You hadn’t even bought her dinner yet, and here she was trying to do reach all the sexual bases of this weird human sport.  </p><p>She kept kissing your neck. You didn’t want her to stop- but the rational part of you took over. She had to know a few things before you two could go any further than this. She was starting to unbutton your shirt!</p><p>“W-wait,” you choked pathetically.  </p><p>Joey stopped. Her eyes met yours, trying to see if something was wrong. “Are you alright, Xef?” she asked, glimmering with concern.</p><p>“No, it’s just- can we have a talk first?” </p><p>“We really should have had a conversation before, huh,” she laughed awkwardly. God, initiating this sort of stuff was so difficult. She felt like she just wanted to die right then and there.  </p><p>She sat up, covering her chest with her hands. She was nervous, her cheeks flushed with her blood. You wondered if you were the first person to ever see her so vulnerable. The charisma and flare she usually displayed seemed to have remarkably diminished. Her confession had seemed more like a fantasy you would indulge in and less like something Joey Claire had actually done. A 10-minute make-out session was what you needed to really convince you she actually did like you. Maybe Dammek was right, maybe your skull was denser than a collapsing star.   </p><p>You were gracious enough to take her blankets and wrap them around her, shielding her bare chest from the piercing cold of the morning breeze. She was really pretty, you thought. You never really indulged in the notion of an interspecies romance before you had come to Earth.  </p><p>“Um, I- I just need to tell you some stuff first. I’m ok with the idea of s-sex! Um, but maybe not right now?” you suggested.  </p><p>“I completely jumped the gun on that. That’s really okay, Xef-” Joey told him, clutching the sheets. She really shouldn’t have been so eager to move things so fast.... </p><p>“No, I liked it, really. It’s just- Alternian privates are just so different with yours and it might hurt or something or even-” </p><p>“It’s ok. I just want to make you feel good,” she smiled. She gave a gentle assuring rub on your thigh.  </p><p>“I want to make you feel good, too,” you whispered. Which was the entire point of this sex stuff, you guessed. You blushed once you realized what came out your mouth, but Joey seemed to be relishing it. She squealed at your shy demeanor. It was nice to know she thought you were cute. Hell, maybe you <em>were</em> cute. Was it a crime to admit such a thought?  </p><p>“Um, so- you want to make some boundaries or something? Or tell me what you like or-” she trailed off. But you interrupted her.  </p><p>“A-ah, yeah. That too. But I just wanted to tell you that- I have a ‘condition’. Um, it’s not really a condition I guess it’s more like something you should just know about.” You hadn’t told anyone here except for Tyzias. She acted with indifference when you told your teal friend, but you really couldn’t expect Joey to have the same reaction.  </p><p>“Um, well- I'm-” </p><p>“Yes?” She urged you to continue.  </p><p>“I’m um, traaaa<em>…” </em>you dragged the word as you felt Joey squeeze your hand tight. This was a nerve-wracking confession, even more nerve-wracking than Joey’s drunk declaration of love from yesterday. “I was born different,” you stressed. As if explicitly confirming to Joey that you were trans would be the death of your relationship. </p><p>“Huh?” </p><p>“I get dysphoria,” you said. “So, I got surgery for it.” </p><p>“Surgery? Where?” </p><p>“M-my chest. You can see if you want to-”  </p><p>“Only if you’re ok with it.” </p><p>You nodded and began unbuttoning your shirt. There was nothing inherently <em>sexual</em> about taking off some clothes. In Alternia, baring yourself naked was impolite but not indecent. No one would strike a troll for flaunting themselves for everyone to see. There was nothing very intimate with being naked with a lover or a friend. But it was another story if someone showed them their <em>wounds. </em>Showing someone how vulnerable and weak you were was a very profound act of pity. Well, you didn’t have any battle wounds, but these scars were a reminder of your emotional damage.  </p><p>Her eyes widened at your scars. They were hideous in your opinion. But you were glad to have them instead of living a day without your chest reconstruction. You felt your chest tighten as you realized your tummy <em>was</em> a little bit chubby, but Joey didn’t pay no mind to it. Her eyes seemed to watered with tears as she smiled sweetly at you. Her chocolate eyes stared deeply into yours.  </p><p>“Xefros, you must trust me a lot,” She began, softly. She seemed so touched by your confession, and it seemed so visceral and profound compared to her silly drunk love confession from last night’s party. “I can’t imagine- You're so brave for telling me this. “ </p><p>“Tyzias knows, too. But besides her, you’re the only other one who knows,” you told her.  </p><p>“Is it ok if I-?”  </p><p>You nodded. You took a deep breath as she felt the lines of your scars, being delicate with them as if they’d break and tear with your flesh. You could hear her heavy breaths as her palm trailed your grey anatomy.  </p><p>“You’re so handsome,” she cooed. You swore you heard her voice hitch.  </p><p>“These are the surgical scars,” you explained.  </p><p>“It doesn’t hurt when I touch them does it?” she asked, concerned. </p><p>“No, I’m fine,” you assured her with a smile. You swore you saw her cheeks turn pink. You wished you could know what made her face so red.  </p><p>“Xefros, I get it. I’m just- so happy we’re so close now,” she smiled. Although deep down, she seemed disheartened that you hadn’t told her sooner. Two years and she hadn’t even gotten whiff of your biological predicament. You had your own pace, you suppose. A very agonizingly slow pace, that is. But she understood that and respected it.</p><p>“Um, but- <em>down there I haven’t-” </em>You were trying to explain. When you came here to Earth, you didn’t have the money <em>nor </em>the access to doctors who could perform bottom surgery on Alternian trolls. Before you went to Earth, Dammek had enlisted a surgeon from the black market to perform your operation, who prioritized money over the legal drawbacks. But here- you really didn’t want to run the risk of being outed. Plus, the idea of getting surgery down there was really scary in of itself.  </p><p><em>“That’s fine,” </em>she giggled. </p><p>“Really?” you asked. “I mean, you’re ok with that? You still like...me?” </p><p>“Of course I do,” she cried. “Xefros, I really do like you. We’ve been through a lot. You’re so funny and sweet and nice and brave. You’re my favourite troll in the entire galaxy.” </p><p>“Really?” you piped, surprised. She <em>did</em> know a lot of trolls, being the heiress to a troll company and all…. </p><p>She laughed. With her right hand still gripping the blanket sheets, she used the other one to cup your cheek, feeling the softness of your skin. She leaned in to peck the edge of your lips, teasing you slightly. Your hands trembled as they tried to find a place to hold her. One of them rested on her shoulder while the other wandered to her hips. She eventually deepened the kiss, and you reciprocated by kissing back.  </p><p>“Cherry,” she murmured into the kiss. You were heavily intoxicated by the rapture of her voice. You might have a thing for sultry voices, or maybe it was just hers.  </p><p>The kiss had to end, so when it did you leaned in to nuzzle your face into her neck. She was so sweet. You were thankful to have met her, even if you had to get dragged out of your planet to serve a very incompetent human billionaire. But Joey had never indulged the idea that you were just a butler to her, even the day you first met. “Is it ok if we just cuddle for a while, Jojo?” you asked. </p><p>“I’d like that a lot, Xeffy,” she laughed.</p><p>---</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>tysm for reading!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
</body>
</html>